Abstract A12: Pervasive hypermutation of super-enhancer regions dysregulates oncogene expression in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma
Authors: Elodie Bal, Rahul Kumar, Mohammad Hadigol, Antony B. Holmes, Laura K. Hilton, Jui Wan Loh, Kostiantyn Dreval, Jasper Wong, Sofija Vlasevska, Clarissa Corinaldesi, Rajesh Kumar Soni Soni, Katia Basso, Ryan D. Morin, Hossein Khiabanian, Laura Pasqualucci, Riccardo Dalla-Favera
Journal: Blood Cancer Discovery (2022)

Abstract Coding-genome sequencing efforts have identified several genes/pathways altered in Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma (DLBCL), including new potential therapeutic targets. However, the mutational contribution of the non-coding genome of DLBCL remains largely unexplored. To identify functionally relevant non-coding mutations targeting regulatory domains, we integrated enhancer (E)/super-enhancer (SE) identification, by ChIP-seq analysis of the hallmark H3K27 histone mark, with whole genome sequencing (WGS) and RNA-seq analysis in 29 DLBCL cell lines representative of the major DLBCL subtypes, along with germinal center (GC) B cells representing the normal counterpart of DLBCL. Following validation in 93 normal/tumor DLBCL biopsies, we found that active SEs are specifically hypermutated (≥3 somatic mutations/Kb) in 99% of DLBCLs, as compared to the same loci when not active as SE (in total, 159 hypermutated SEs, with at least 2/case). As evidence of oncogenic relevance, we have shown that the hypermutated SEs linked to the BCL6 and BCL2 proto-oncogenes prevent the binding and transcriptional downregulation by transcriptional repressors. Genetic correction of selected mutations using the CRISPR/Cas9 technology restored repressor DNA-binding, downregulated target gene expression, and led to the counter-selection of cells harboring corrected alleles, indicating oncogenic dependency from the SE mutations. A third recurrently hypermutated SE was the CXCR4-SE, affected in 19% of cases. CXCR4 encodes for a G-protein coupled chemokine receptor involved in cell migration within the GC, and is mutationally activated in 40% of Waldenström macrobulinemia (WM), a post-GC lymphoproliferative disease. We identified a mutational hotspot preventing the binding of the NR3C1 glucocorticoid receptor in 7.5% of DLBCL cases. Correction of the mutations in cell lines led to counter selection and reduced expression of CXCR4. Conversely, the introduction of a mutation disrupting NR3C1 binding in WT DLBCL cells increased CXCR4 expression. Together, these results are consistent with dependency of the mutant cells on the CXCR4-SE mutation, and confirm a direct link between SE mutations in this region and deregulated gene expression through escape from NR3C1-mediated suppression. In primary cases, mutations in the NR3C1 binding site of the CXCR4-SE were observed in the absence of NR3C1 coding mutations and correlated with increased CXCR4 transcript levels, as documented by RNA-seq. Together with the oncogenic role of CXCR4 in WM, these findings reveal this chemokine receptor as a potential oncogenic target in DLBCL. Collectively, these findings reveal a new layer of genetic alterations, which identifies novel mechanisms of dysregulation for known oncogenes, as well as new dysregulated genes and pathways, with implications for precision classification and therapeutic targeting of DLBCL. * Co-senior authors. Citation Format: Elodie Bal, Rahul Kumar, Mohammad Hadigol, Antony B. Holmes, Laura K. Hilton, Jui Wan Loh, Kostiantyn Dreval, Jasper Wong, Sofija Vlasevska, Clarissa Corinaldesi, Rajesh Kumar Soni Soni, Katia Basso, Ryan D. Morin, Hossein Khiabanian, Laura Pasqualucci, Riccardo Dalla-Favera. Pervasive hypermutation of super-enhancer regions dysregulates oncogene expression in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Third AACR International Meeting: Advances in Malignant Lymphoma: Maximizing the Basic-Translational Interface for Clinical Application; 2022 Jun 23-26; Boston, MA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Blood Cancer Discov 2022;3(5_Suppl):Abstract nr A12.